Will NBCs broadcast takeover and advertising campaign make the league/sport? mainstream in the US (the fifth major sport) or will it remain a nitch sport, a huge money loss for the network and forever cement NBC to Sunday Night Football and the Olympics?

Dempsey back to MLS. Good/bad for American soccer or perhaps a little of both?

Can anyone else crash the top 4 party?

Will Bale go to Madrid or stay with Spurs

Will Jammies complete his destiny and get Villa relegated or will Guzan and Benteke save him again plus many other intriguing story lines for this year Champs league/Bundesliga/serie A/la liga etc...

Poor tv ratings though. Gives ammo to the niche argument I guess. Was good to DVR and see Man U and Chelsea in a pretty intense early season game. Rooney was inspired and Chelsea was without David Luiz but there were tons of opportunities.

As to NBC, I'll miss Ian Darke a lot. But they have the network capacity and hopefully this builds interest. You see the NWSL playoff games this weekend (having a 12 yr old daughter I sure did)? Close friends and family only in the seats.

Also saw the NWSL salaries. Those girls earn between $6k and $30k for the season. That was stunning to me.

It could, and I hope it isn't, be an XFL size mistake for NBC, when you figure advertising v.s. revenue. Billboards in Times Square, repainting NYC subway cars cannot be cheap. They are all in.

I'll miss Darke but will see him for WCQ and the Cup. Arlo White is an acceptable replacement.

Good start to the year however. Good games. Newly promoted teams challenging and even beating the elite. If you are going to go all in, it might as well be with the EPL. Top to bottom the most competitive league.

I have found myself watching the past two weeks and gambling. I wake up early in the AM even on weekends not so I'd much rather watch an actual event as the season progresses then the football lead up shows. Maybe tune in for the last 15-20 minutes of Gameday but that's it. I have zero interest in the NFL pregame and all their mindless cackling.

The analysis and presentation for NBC is actually quite good, as well. Rebecca Lowe and their two analysts are very strong. It may not catch on across the states but it is not for lack of effort, talent or overall presentation.

Playing here is the closest thing to heaven. Really, I mean it's amazing to be in a place where the fans truly cherish their football team and stick behind them win or lose. We players love them, too. I feel a sense of accomplishment playing here, we are a special breed of football players with a great opportunity." ~ tOSU LB Brian Rolle

Ha! And nothing will lift the game here into the mainstream like gambling will. That's a big piece of it.

Mentioned it before I'm sure but I went to a Crew game in July and the game day experience was great. They do a rterrific job.

Likewise, I drove to Rochester couple weeks back so Kacie could watch Wambach play Alex Morgan (and for Tobin Heath, Carli Lloyd, Christie Sinclair, etc). She idolizes the USWNT.

It's terrific because they go out of their way to bring the players close. Kacie was actually trembling at times as the players slapped hands with the kids as they warmed up or came on and off the field.

Disappointed in that some of the USWNT players didn't sign afterward for the girls (and it's almost all girls) but was extremely impressed that the Thorns (and specifically the women of the Canadian National Team) took as much time as they did. That was another great lesson for Kacie as she can't find the hatred in her heart for those girls that she had before

There's a pic down there of Karina LeBlanc who's the Canadian GK. More personality in that chick than on most teams and she was awesome with those kids.

If you guys have girls who are into it, it's worth the trip. It was tremendous even though Morgan had gotten hurt the game before this and wasn't there.

motherscratcher wrote:I feel like I want to pick an EPL team, but I can never remember to look for games. What days/times are they normally on?

Most on Saturday, some on Sunday and occasionally (like yesterday) a Monday matchup.

That can vary when the Champions League matches heat up in earnest.

Biggest issue in viewing is the current 5 hour time difference. You'll have to be up early to catch most of the action on Saturday and Sunday. If you have bein Network as well as Fox Soccer you can also catch some good Serie A (Italy). La Liga (Spain) and Bundesliga (Germany) matchups.

Personally I like watching Chelsea though if Man U is the Yankees then Chelsea is Red Sox or Dogers when it comes to EPL. I just enjoy watching Torres, Hazard and David Luiz and their styles of play.

Plus John Terry is always just a frustrated moment away from starting some type of international, racially-motivated incident.

motherscratcher wrote:I feel like I want to pick an EPL team, but I can never remember to look for games. What days/times are they normally on?

Most on Saturday, some on Sunday and occasionally (like yesterday) a Monday matchup.

That can vary when the Champions League matches heat up in earnest.

Biggest issue in viewing is the current 5 hour time difference. You'll have to be up early to catch most of the action on Saturday and Sunday. If you have bein Network as well as Fox Soccer you can also catch some good Serie A (Italy). La Liga (Spain) and Bundesliga (Germany) matchups.

This is why weekends in the fall are so great. On Saturday and Sunday you can wake up at 8am and watch EPL until noonish, and then as soon as that's over you got a full day/evening of American football.

"I don't think they're building chemical weapons in Berea. But they might be. I can't say for sure."Chuck Klosterman

Other lesson of that story Peek, never met a Canadian (other than a couple French ones that don't count) that I didn't find enjoyable in their company.

EPL on Saturday mornings and some Sunday (when not hungover) are great to sit thru, read the paper or surf the web. Basically it is always 2 hours of viewing, never more and it's tolerable background noise. The announcers are the best in any sport, with hockey being the only competition. Crowd shots of drunken, shirtless English is enjoyable, as well. Plus the aforementioned incident never more than a spike or bump away.

The Cardiff match wasn't on last week but would have thoroughly enjoyed watching that in its entirety. Did get to catch the last 6 minutes of injury time. Was as much of edge-of-your-seat sport as you could get. Not sure what the equivalent of that match was... maybe like a 15 upsetting a 2 in NCAA.

If I have a team it's Spurs but oddly I can find myself rooting against or for almost any match. I think I hate Chelsea and Liverpool for certain. Some of the jerseys are awesome, as well. My 3rd year on it and fandom has grown exponentially since '11.

Playing here is the closest thing to heaven. Really, I mean it's amazing to be in a place where the fans truly cherish their football team and stick behind them win or lose. We players love them, too. I feel a sense of accomplishment playing here, we are a special breed of football players with a great opportunity." ~ tOSU LB Brian Rolle

Other lesson of that story Peek, never met a Canadian (other than a couple French ones that don't count) that I didn't find enjoyable in their company.

They were great. LeBlanc said she'd sign for all fans if the fans sang the Canadian Anthem while she did it and almost any pics she took had to be selfies with the kid and her with some similar dopey expression. Sinclair is one of the five best female players on the planet and she was terrific too. Much more business-like than many but she had a nice word and a 'thank you' for all the kids as she went through the line.

LLoyd, Heath and Wambach were besieged which has to be a drag but the Canadians were much more engaging. And when you have a kid that's so into the game it really makes a parent happy to see players take the time not only to sign but for a quick conversation with the player.

I'd go back in a second and was thinking about going Saturday when the Thorns and Flash play the championship game in Rochester. The soccer is high level, the setting is great and there are a thousand lessons for a kid to learn both athletically (Wambach works harder in pre-game than most athletes do all week) and in general.

The whole thing interests me. So compettitive for NT spots because that's only way to make a decent (not great) living playing professionally. 14 USWNT players make $70k (plus housing stipend) and 6 others make $50k. That's in addition to what they make in leagues like NWSL or overseas. And, as in anything else, the stars like Wambach and Morgan make their biggest dollars in endorsements. They also get bonuses for WC wins and each made $25k each for their gold medal Olympic finish last year.

I also looked at MSL salaries. You realize the very best in American soccer have a minimum of $35k. Not guys like Dempsey, Donovan and foreign stars, but the run of the mill roster fodder only make $35k.

The crowd reactions and announcers during this call were what really turned me toward EPL for enjoyment purposes.

Playing here is the closest thing to heaven. Really, I mean it's amazing to be in a place where the fans truly cherish their football team and stick behind them win or lose. We players love them, too. I feel a sense of accomplishment playing here, we are a special breed of football players with a great opportunity." ~ tOSU LB Brian Rolle

Playing here is the closest thing to heaven. Really, I mean it's amazing to be in a place where the fans truly cherish their football team and stick behind them win or lose. We players love them, too. I feel a sense of accomplishment playing here, we are a special breed of football players with a great opportunity." ~ tOSU LB Brian Rolle

Like the Yankees getting old and struggling. Fun to watch for a season or two as their fans have strokes.

But like the Yankees they have the cash to get healthy quickly. And it's not like City is the Pirates

Now, I really enjoyed El Clasico on Sunday. You want to talk about some amazing talent, effort and fun? That game had it all. Especially the first half that was as good as any half of soccer I've seen.

And my worst nightmare is over. United finishing 6th in the EPL but winning the Champs League and costing Everton a spot.

PSG soiled themselves in letting Chelsea through but looking forward to semi's.

And fwiw. Bayern might be the best club you bnever hear from. All they do is win titles and there's very little drama associated with them. Contrast that with the Spanish and EPL soap opera and I can't help but appreciate the way Bayern goes about their business.

BTW, what the eff happened to get Sermanni shit canned with the USWNT? A shitty Algarve Cup was enough to unload him a year before the WWC? That came outta nowhere. Wonder why and whether some of the bigger players on the USWNT had anything to do with it though those who have said anything publicly have all been very kind toward Sermanni.

I think Munich is one of the 4 UEFA teams that are the elite of the elite- FCB, Real and United (despite this down year)- have almost that mystique type quality to them like the Yankees. And it's only getting better for Munich because they are raiding Dortmund and getting Lewandowski. It looked like they were sleep walking, taking United too lightly, and it almost bit 'em, but they woke up and took care of business. Should be a good last two legs of the tournament.

That firing was out of the blue, but then I didn't even realize they were playing a tournament. I'm sure they have their eyes on someone. Let's hope so because qualifying should be right around the corner.

Squints wrote:Ronaldo and Real exposing Bayern right now. That free kick was just flat out sick.

That was over at 2-0 and certainly at the 34 minute mark when it was 3-0.

Not often you go from UCL champ and beloved genius to potentially out of a job after getting to within game of another title chance. But Pep may have just done it with his steadfast refusal to try anything other than what he knows.

Anyone watching Crystal Palace/Liverpool just got a lesson in why the EPL is still the best (most competitive ) league out there. A team that fought relegation most of the year came out of nowhere and drew one of the historic teams and more than likely denied them their first title in a generation. Heartbreaking for daz and Red supporters, but fantastic for everyone else. What a match.

Squints wrote:Anyone watching Crystal Palace/Liverpool just got a lesson in why the EPL is still the best (most competitive ) league out there. A team that fought relegation most of the year came out of nowhere and drew one of the historic teams and more than likely denied them their first title in a generation. Heartbreaking for daz and Red supporters, but fantastic for everyone else. What a match.

And LFC had a 3-0 lead.

La Liga set up for great finish as well after none of top three could win this past weekend.

And did anyone see the Ronaldo back heel goal in stoppage time to tie that match Sunday?Jesus. Was more like bottom of the boot from a ridiculous angle.

If I had someone who was starting to get into soccer as a spectator sport- someone who has had enough NFL draft talk, regurgitating the same discussion about the Tribe and Cavs or had their fill of Chief Wahoo "debates" to last a lifetime, I would have them watch the last 20 mintues of that game. My wife watched it was taken in- the circumstances, the talented goals, Liverpool's attempted retaliation in stoppage time, the crowd, Suarez/Gerrard's devestation (loved that) and the announcers letting the picture speak for itself. It had it all.

It could be the fantastic season that the EPL has produced, but NBC's coverage has been outstanding. Arlo White is the best in the game (and I love Ian Darke), Rebecca Lowe and the studio guys- fantastic and not self-promoting (refreshing). Yes, soccer may never be as popular here as it is over there, but it's gaining fans with each passing year..